Systems and methods for providing context-based voicemail

ABSTRACT

Voicemail systems and methods for managing voicemail systems are provided herein. The subject voicemail systems provide a plurality voicemail greeting, each of which are associated with a context tag. The context tag can be, for example, a location, a device parameter, an account parameter, a network parameter, or any other contextual information. Upon receipt of a change in a context tag, the voicemail system determines a new voicemail greeting associated with the new context tag and sets the new voicemail greeting to the active voicemail greeting.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.11/772,974, filed Jul. 3, 2007, the entirety of which is hereinincorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to voicemail systems and, moreparticularly, to the field of voicemail systems with multiple voicemailgreetings.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Voicemail systems allow a caller to leave a voice message if the desiredrecipient is unavailable. Past voicemail systems provided one voicemailgreeting to be played for every caller, regardless of the identity ofthe caller. In this system type, all callers would receive the samevoicemail greeting. Accordingly, it was desirable to design and buildimproved voicemail systems capable of maintaining multiple voicemailgreetings and assigning each greeting to one or more callers based uponthe identity of the caller as determined by the caller's telephonenumber.

Although improved voicemail systems are beneficial in targeting specificcalling parties, they are deficient in providing multiple greetingsbased on the context of the recipient. Contextual factors such as therecipient's location, device characteristics, account characteristicsand the like change from time to time and are telling of the recipient'savailability. Accordingly, the recipient's availability changes, oftentimes unexpectedly. In these situations, the recipient may miss or beforced to ignore an important call and the calling party may becomedisgruntled that the recipient did not answer.

Notwithstanding the respective improvements in the aforementionedsystems, the industry has not yet turned its attention to new voicemailsystems and novel methods for managing voicemail systems that allowmultiple voicemail greetings to be presented to incoming callers basedupon the present context of the recipient. This and other aspects of thepresent invention will become readily apparent from the descriptionprovided herein.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One aspect of the present invention employs a voicemail system thatincludes at least one voicemail account. Each voicemail account isassociated with a plurality of voicemail greetings, and at least onecontext tag is associated with the voicemail greetings. The context tagcan be a location identifier, a device parameter, a network parameter,an account parameter, or any other contextual information, for example.

In another aspect of the invention, a method of managing the abovevoicemail system includes receiving a first context tag; determining afirst voicemail greeting associated with the first context tag; andsetting the first voicemail greeting as the active voicemail greeting.The method can further include receiving an unanswered call, andpresenting the first voicemail greeting to the calling party in responseto the unanswered call. The method can still further include receiving anotification with a second context tag; determining a second voicemailgreeting associated with the second context tag; and setting the secondvoicemail greeting as the active voicemail greeting. The secondvoicemail greeting would then be presented to the calling party inresponse to an unanswered call. The context tag and associated voicemailgreeting can be changed any number of times as the voicemail recipient'scontext changes. A computer-readable medium, comprisingcomputer-executable instructions that, when executed, perform the stepsof the above method is also disclosed.

In another aspect of the invention, an exemplary system for managingcontext-based voicemail includes at least one context device capable ofreceiving subscriber identification from a mobile terminal via ashort-range communication medium and a context server in communicationwith the context device, wherein the context server is capable ofreceiving the subscriber identification from the context device. Contextinformation can be stored in a memory of either or both of the contextdevice or the context server. A voicemail system is in communicationwith the context server. The voicemail system includes a plurality ofvoicemail accounts, at least one of which can include a plurality ofvoicemail greetings corresponding to a plurality of context informationtypes. The voicemail system is configured to receive the subscriberidentification and the context information, determine the contextinformation type of the context information, determine the voicemailgreeting corresponding to the determined context information type, andset the determined voicemail greeting to the active voicemail greetingfor the voicemail account associated with the subscriber identification.

In one embodiment, the context information includes a primary locationof a venue, such as, for example, a name and/or address of the venue. Inanother embodiment the context information additionally includes asecondary location of a venue, such as, for example, a destinationwithin the venue. In yet another embodiment, the context information caninclude at least one of a date, time, and length of an event at thevenue.

In another aspect of the present invention, a voicemail system includesa processor and a memory. The memory includes a plurality of voicemailaccounts and a voicemail greeting database, wherein the voicemailgreeting database includes a plurality of voicemail greetingscorresponding to the context tags. The context tags are associated witha plurality of context information types, such as, for example, alocation, a device parameter, a network parameter, and an accountparameter.

In yet another aspect of the present invention, a computer program isprovided for receiving a notification informing a user of theavailability of a new voicemail greeting in response to a context tagchange in a voicemail system. The notification is displayed on a displayof the mobile terminal and may accompany a prompt to determine whetherthe user would like to accept active the new voicemail greeting. Thisfunctionality may alternatively be automatic and the notification wouldbe sent without a prompt.

In another aspect of the present invention, a method for managingcontext-based voicemail includes receiving subscriber identificationfrom a mobile terminal at a context device via a short-rangecommunication medium; creating a message at the context device or acontext server, wherein the message includes the subscriberidentification and context information; and sending the message from thecontext server to a voicemail system, the voicemail system including aplurality of voicemail accounts, at least one of the voicemail accountsincluding a plurality of voicemail greetings corresponding to aplurality of context information types; receiving the message at thevoicemail system; determining the context information type of thecontext information; determining the voicemail greeting corresponding tothe determined context information type; and setting the determinedvoicemail greeting to the active voicemail greeting for the voicemailaccount associated with the subscriber identification.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary environment in which the presentinvention may be practiced.

FIG. 2 illustrates another exemplary environment in which the presentinvention may be practiced.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary voicemail account configured with aplurality of voicemail greetings, each being associated with a contexttag, according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary mobile device, according to the presentinvention.

FIGS. 5-10 illustrate various notifications and settings correspondingto features of the present invention.

FIG. 11 illustrates a flow diagram of an exemplary method for managing avoicemail system of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosedherein. It must be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merelyexemplary examples of the invention that may be embodied in various andalternative forms, and combinations thereof. As used herein, the word“exemplary” is used expansively to refer to embodiments that serve as anillustration, specimen, model or pattern. The figures are notnecessarily to scale and some features may be exaggerated or minimizedto show details of particular components. In other instances, well-knowncomponents, systems, materials or methods have not been described indetail in order to avoid obscuring the present invention. Therefore,specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not tobe interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and asa representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variouslyemploy the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like numerals represent likeelements throughout the several views, FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplarytelecommunications network 100. The network 100 includes a plurality ofcells 102 that can form distinct location areas. For example, a firstlocation area (LA1) can include cells 1-3 and a second location area(LA2) can include cells 4 and 5. The location areas are assignedlocation area identities (LAI). A LAI includes a mobile country code(MCC), mobile network code (MNC), and location area code (LAC) thatdefine the country, network, and location area, respectively. A locationarea is typically defined by the network operator as one or more cellsand is used for handover processes, among others.

The present invention utilizes context tags to change a voicemailgreeting based upon the voicemail recipient's context, such as, forexample, their location, device characteristics, accountcharacteristics, network characteristics, and the like. In oneembodiment, one or more LAIs are used as the context tag. For example,LA1 can correspond to one context tag and LA2 can correspond to anothercontext tag. Accordingly, when the recipient is in communication with acell in LA1, the voicemail greeting associated with the context tag thatincludes LA1 would be presented to a calling party in response to anunanswered call. Likewise, if the recipient travels to LA2 the voicemailgreeting associated with the context tag that includes LA2 would bepresented to a calling party in response to an unanswered call.

The recipient can request that a certain voicemail greeting be playedfor a particular location area; however, the recipient may not be privyto the actual location area or corresponding LAI. In such a case, therecipient may designate a location based upon a city, town, county,state, region, country, or continent. The recipient can designate thelocation with a unique identifier for the location, such as a name ofthe location or a numeric identifier, for example. By way of example andnot limitation, the numeric identifier may be a zip code, an area code,or a proprietary numeric identifier defined for this use. Alphanumericidentifiers may alternatively be used. The unique identifier would thenbe correlated to the appropriate LAI(s) such that the network coulddetermine the appropriate voicemail greeting for the correspondinglocations.

The recipient can establish the locations for each voicemail greetingvia a voicemail system interface. The voicemail system interface may beaccessed, for example, from the user's handset, by a phone call to thevoicemail system, via a website, or via a call center.

Each cell within the illustrated location areas includes a base station(BS) 104, 105 that is in communication with a respective base stationcontroller (BSC) 106, 108. Each BSC 106,108, in turn, is incommunication with a respective mobile switching center (MSC) 110, 112.The MSCs 110, 112 can include the functionality of a visiting locationregister (VLR). The MSCs 110, 112 are in communication with a homelocation register (HLR) 114 and a voicemail system 116. The voicemailsystem 116 is in communication with a greeting database 118.

The voicemail system 116 can be configured with a processor and memoryto perform typical voicemail operations in addition to the noveloperations described herein. In one embodiment, the voicemail system 116is configured to correlate a context tag with the greeting database 118to determine the active voicemail greeting(s).

The illustrated network 100 also includes a mobile terminal (MT) 120.The MT 120 is illustrated as being in communication with the BS 104 ofcell 1. A context tag in the form of a location tag is provided to thevoicemail system 116. The voicemail system 116 uses the location tag todetermine which voicemail greeting should be used for an unanswered callwhile the MT 120 is positioned in cell 1, or more broadly LA1. As the MT120 moves from LA1 to LA2 a location update is performed. Accompanyingthe location update is the context tag that the MSC/VLR 110, 112 and/orvoicemail system 116 uses to determine the new active voicemailgreeting. The repositioned MT 120 is illustrated as MT′.

In one embodiment, the MSC/VLR 110, 112 is updated with a new locationvia a location update process. This information can then be sent to thevoicemail system 116, wherein the voicemail system 116 can determine ifthe active voicemail greeting should be changed based upon the LAI ofthe new location. In this embodiment the context tag is the LAI. Thecontext tag is correlated with the voicemail greetings database 118 todetermine the corresponding voicemail greeting(s). Multiple voicemailgreetings can be used such that the voicemail greeting is dependent uponboth the identity of the calling party and the context of the recipient.

In another embodiment, the MSC/VLR 110, 112 can receive the new locationin terms of the LAI and convert this information to one or more uniquelocation identifiers related to that LAI. This allows the voicemailsystem 116 to receive the location identifier and correlate directlywith the voicemail greetings database 118 to determine the propervoicemail greeting. This eliminates the need for the voicemail system116 to be exposed to the LAIs of the network. As such, the MSC/VLR 110,112 may include a processor and memory configuration so as to supportadditional processing and storage functions required to convert an LAIto the corresponding location identifiers. For example, suppose LA1corresponds to Atlanta, Ga. and LA2 corresponds to New York City, N.Y.The MSC/VLR 110, 112 would convert the LAI for LA1 and LA2 to thelocation identifier used for Atlanta, Ga. and New York City, N.Y.,respectively. In this embodiment, the context tag is the unique locationidentifier.

Other location determining techniques, for example, global positioningsystem (GPS), assisted-GPS (A-GPS), triangulation, proximity MSC, andthe like may alternatively be used to determine the location of the MT120 and consequently the voicemail greeting for that location.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a venue 200 is illustrated. The venue includesa context device 202. The context device 202 can be configured with aprocessor and memory configuration to process and store contextinformation 204. The context information 204 can include the venue nameand location. The context information 204 can also include moreparticular information. For example, if the venue 200 is a movietheatre, the context device 202 may be positioned near the entryway of aparticular movie screen. In this example, the context information 204can include the movie title, start time, running time, and end time.This context information 202 can be supplied to a context server 206that is in communication with the voicemail system 116 and the greetingdatabase 118. The context server 206 may receive all context information204 from the context device 202 or may append additional contextinformation, such as the name and location of the example movie theatre.The context server 206 can be in communication with the voicemail system116 via the cellular network, the public switched telephone network, orthe Internet, for example.

The MT 120 is illustrated as being in communication with the contextdevice 202 via a short-range communication medium 208, for example, nearfield communication, BLUETOOTH®, Wi-Fi®, infrared, infrared dataassociation (IrDA®, ZigBee®, radio frequency identification (RFID),contactless smart cards, and the like. In one embodiment, when the MT120 is within range of the context device 202, the MT 120 cancommunicate subscriber identification information, for example, anInternational Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) or a TemporaryInternational Mobile Subscriber Identity (T-IMSI). For security reasons,the T-IMSI may be more appropriate. In either case, the IMSI/T-IMSIsupplies the context device with subscriber identification informationthat is used to correlate with a subscriber's voicemail account.

In the above embodiment, the context information 204 is relayed to thevoicemail system 116 without the MT 120. However, a second exemplaryembodiment may utilize the MT 120 to send the context information 204 tovoicemail system 116. In this embodiment, the MT 120 receives thecontext information 204 from the context device 202 when the MT 120 iswithin range and given that the MT 120 is configured to receive suchinformation and, sends the context information 204 to the voicemailsystem 116. The MT 120 may include software for managing thereceive/send functions of context information 204 from various sources(e.g., context device 202).

Referring now to FIG. 3 a, an exemplary voicemail account 300 isillustrated. The voicemail account 300 includes a location field 302, adevice parameter field 304, an account parameter field 306, and agreeting field 308. As described with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2,the location field 302 can include location information retrieved fromLAIs, GPS coordinates, a context device 202, or other locationdetermining techniques. The illustrated location field 302 includesentries for Atlanta, New York, Chicago, Venue, and International. Anynumber of location entries may be established for a voicemail account.

In the illustrated example, the Atlanta entry corresponds to asubscriber's home location. This may be defined, for example, by theLAIs associated with Atlanta. This may be extended to the entire stateof Georgia, Georgia and one or more surrounding states, the entiresoutheast United States, or any other location as defined by thesubscriber or the network operator for this context (location) tag.

The New York entry corresponds to one of the subscriber's worklocations. Again, this may be defined by the LAIs associated with NewYork and, in some cases, the surrounding areas. The Chicago entrycorresponds to the subscriber's vacation location, the Venue entry canbe a movie theatre or other venue the subscriber visits, and theInternational entry can be a second work location for the subscriber.Each of these locations corresponds to different greetings, as shown inthe greeting field 308. So, when the subscriber changes location from,for example, Atlanta to Chicago the active voicemail greeting wouldchange from Greeting 1 to Greeting 3.

The device parameter field 304 includes device parameters that can beused to change the active greeting, Two example entries, battery lifeand signal strength are shown. These parameters can include thresholdvalues such that if the battery life or signal strength of the MT isequal to or below the specified threshold value then the activevoicemail greeting is changed to the corresponding voicemail greetingfor that condition. Other device parameters can be used.

The account parameter field 306 includes account parameters that can beused to change the active greeting. Two example entries, remaining voiceminutes and data limit are shown, These parameters use details of thesubscriber's account to change the active voicemail greeting. Theseparameters can include threshold values such that if the number of voiceor data minutes allotted for a subscriber's plan is equal to or belowthe specified threshold value then the active voicemail greeting ischanged to the corresponding voicemail greeting for that condition.Other account parameters can be used.

The examples presented above are merely exemplary of the possiblecontext information that can be used to change the active greeting ofthe voicemail account 300. Other context information can be stored inthe voicemail account and associated with one or more greetings.

The greetings field 308 contains multiple voicemail greetings associatedwith the voicemail account 300. The voicemail greetings can be genericor customizable by the user or by the network. A generic voicemailgreeting can be used to generally describe the current context of thevoicemail recipient to a calling party. For example, if the recipientvisits a venue, then the generic voicemail greeting can state that therecipient cannot receive calls now because they are at a venue. Thenetwork, however, may provide a more detailed customized voicemailgreeting for such a scenario, The customized greeting can state that therecipient cannot receive calls now because they are at a movie theatre.More particular information such as the movie theatre name, the moviethe recipient is there to see, and the end time for the movie can alsobe embedded in the customized voice message. Of particular note here isthat the user/recipient does not have to record a voice message for eachcontext, instead, the network is capable of embedding contextinformation into generic voicemail messages.

The recipient can, however, record custom messages for various contextenvironments that recipient frequents. For example, if a recipienttravels from a home location in Atlanta to a work location in New York,the recipient may desire to record customized messages for thosescenarios. The places, venues, or situations that occur less frequentlycan be assigned generic voicemail message or customizable networkmessages. Context information can be embedded in a user-customizedmessage as well.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a schematic block diagram of an exemplarymultimode handset 120 is illustrated in accordance with an innovativeaspect. In order to provide additional context for various aspectsthereof, FIG. 4 and the following discussion are intended to provide abrief, general description of a suitable environment in which thevarious aspects of the innovation can be implemented. While thedescription includes a general context of computer-executableinstructions, the present invention can also be implemented incombination with other program modules and/or as a combination ofhardware and software.

Generally, applications (e.g., program modules) can include routines,programs, components, data structures, etc., that perform particulartasks or implement particular abstract data types. Moreover, theinventive methods can be practiced with other system configurations,including single-processor or multiprocessor systems, minicomputers,mainframe computers, as well as personal computers, hand-held computingdevices, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, andthe like, each of which can be operatively coupled to one or moreassociated devices.

The handset 120 (e.g., a cell phone) can typically include a variety ofcomputer-readable media. Computer-readable media can be any availablemedia accessed by the handset systems and includes volatile andnon-volatile media, removable and non-removable media. By way ofexample, and not limitation, computer-readable media can comprise devicestorage media and communication media. Storage media includes volatileand/or non-volatile, removable and/or non-removable media implemented inany method or technology for the storage of information such ascomputer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules orother data. Storage media can include, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM,EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital videodisc (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic tape, magnetic diskstorage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which canbe used to store the desired information and which can be accessed bythe handset systems.

The handset 120 includes a processor 402 for controlling and processingonboard operations and functions. A memory 404 interfaces to theprocessor 402 for the storage of data and one or more applications 406(e.g., a video player software, user feedback component software, etc.).The applications 406 can also include a user interface (UI) application408 that operates with a client 410 (e.g., operating system) tofacilitate user interaction with handset functionality and data, forexample, answering/initiating calls, entering/deleting data, configuringsettings, address book manipulation, multimode interaction, etc. Theapplications 406 can include other applications 412 installed with thehandset 406 and/or installed as add-ons or plug-ins to the client 410and/or UI 408, for example, or for other purposes (e.g., processor,firmware, etc.).

The other applications 412 can include voice recognition ofpredetermined voice commands that facilitate user control, call voiceprocessing, voice recording, messaging, e-mail processing, videoprocessing, image processing, music play, as well as subsystems orcomponents described infra. Some of the applications 406 can be storedin the memory 404 and/or in a firmware 414, and executed by theprocessor 402 from either or both the memory 404 and/or the firmware414. The firmware 414 can also store code for execution in power-upinitialization and control during normal operation of the handset 120.

A communications component 416 can interface to the processor 402 tofacilitate wired/wireless communications with external systems, forexample, cellular networks, VoIP (voice-over-IP) networks, localwireless networks or personal wireless networks such as Wi-Fi, Wi-Max,and so on. Here, the communications component 416 can also include amultimode communications subsystem for providing cellular communicationsvia different cellular technologies. For example, a first cellulartransceiver 418 (e.g., GSM) can be one mode and an Nth transceiver 420can provide cellular communications via an Nth cellular network (e.g.,UMTS), where N is a positive integer. The communications component 416can also include a transceiver 422 for unlicensed communications (e.g.,Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, Bluetooth, etc.) for corresponding communications. Thecommunications component 416 can also facilitate communicationsreception from terrestrial radio networks (e.g., broadcast), digitalsatellite radio networks, and Internet-based radio services networks.

The handset 120 can process IP data traffic via the communicationscomponent 416 to accommodate IP traffic from an IP network such as, forexample, the Internet, a corporate intranet, a home broadband network, apersonal area network, etc., via an ISP broadband cable provider. Thus,VoIP traffic can be utilized by the handset 120 and IP-based multimediacontent can be received in an encoded and/or decoded format.

The handset 120 includes a display 424 for displaying multimedia thatinclude text, images, video, telephony functions (e.g., a Caller IDfunction), setup functions, menus, etc. The display 424 can alsoaccommodate the presentation of multimedia content (e.g., musicmetadata, messages, wallpaper, graphics, etc.).

An input/output (I/O) interface 426 can be provided for serial/parallelI/O of data and/or signals (e.g., USB, and/or IEEE 1394) via a hardwireconnection, and other I/O devices (e.g., a keyboard, keypad, mouse,interface tether, stylus pen, touch screen, etc.). The I/O interface 426can be utilized for updating and/or troubleshooting the handset 120, forexample.

Audio capabilities can be provided via an audio I/O component 428, whichcan include a speaker for the output of audio signals related to, forexample, indication that the user pressed the proper key or keycombination to initiate the user feedback signal, call signals, music,etc. The audio I/O component 428 also facilitates the input of audiosignals via a microphone to record data and/or telephony voice data, andfor inputting voice signals for telephone conversations.

The handset 120 can include a slot interface 430 for accommodating asubscriber identity system 432 that can accommodate a SIM or universalSIM (USIM), and interfacing the subscriber identity system 432 with theprocessor 402. However, it is to be appreciated that the subscriberidentity system 432 can be manufactured into the handset 120, andupdated by downloading data and software thereinto.

An image capture and processing system 434 (e.g., a camera) can beprovided for decoding encoded image content. Additionally, as indicated,photos can be obtained via an associated image capture subsystem of theimage system 434. The handset 120 can also include a video component 436for processing video content received and, for recording andtransmitting video content.

Optionally, a geolocation component 438 (e.g., GPS-global positioningsystem) facilitates receiving geolocation signals (e.g., from satellitesvia the communications component 416) that define the location of thehandset 120. Alternatively, or in combination therewith, the geolocationcomponent 438 can facilitate triangulation processing for locating thehandset 120.

The handset 120 also includes a power source 440 in the form ofbatteries and/or an AC power subsystem, which power source 440 caninterface to an external power system or charging equipment (not shown)via a power I/O component 442.

Referring now to FIG. 5, an exemplary MT 120 is illustrated. Theillustrated MT 120 includes a display 502 such as a liquid crystaldisplay (LCD) on which a location change notification 506 isillustrated. The location change notification 506 informs the user thattheir location has changed and a voicemail greeting corresponding totheir new location is available. The user is presented with an optionsmenu 508 with options for Yes and No. The user can select either optionvia a keypad 504.

Referring now to FIG. 6, the exemplary MT 120 is again illustrated,however, in this embodiment the notification is a venue changenotification 606. The venue change notification 606 informs the userthat their venue location has changed and a voicemail greetingcorresponding to their new venue location is available.

Referring now to FIG. 7, the exemplary MT 120 is again illustrated,however, in this embodiment the notification is a battery levelnotification 706. The battery level notification 706 informs the userthat their device battery level has changed below the specifiedthreshold level and a voicemail greeting corresponding to the lowbattery status is available.

Referring now to FIG. 8, the exemplary MT 120 is again illustrated,however, in this embodiment the notification is a low signal strengthnotification 806. The low signal strength notification 806 informs theuser that their signal strength has changed below the specifiedthreshold level and a voicemail greeting corresponding to the low signalstrength status is available.

Referring now to FIG. 9, the exemplary MT 120 is again illustrated,however, in this embodiment the notification is a low minutenotification 906. The low minute notification 906 informs the user thattheir subscription minutes are below the specified threshold level and avoicemail greeting corresponding to the low minute status is available.

FIGS. 5-9 describe various notifications sent to the MT 120 in responseto a context tag change. In each of these examples the user is providedthe option to accept or decline a voicemail greeting changecorresponding to a context tag change. However, the MT 120 can include acontext-based voicemail setting 1006 (FIG. 10) that can be set to anautomatic mode or a manual mode via an options menu 1008. Theillustrated context-based voicemail setting 1006 is an overall modeselection that affects all context tags and their associated voicemailgreeting(s). The context-based voicemail setting 1006 can be extended toeach context tag type so that the user can select the voicemailgreetings that should be changed based upon a change in context for aparticular context tag type. For example, a user may desire locationupdates to automatically trigger a change in the active voicemail, butmay not desire for venue updates to automatically trigger a change inthe active voicemail.

Referring now to FIG. 11, an exemplary flow diagram is illustrated of amethod 1100 for managing a voicemail system, according to the presentinvention. It should be understood that the illustrated methods are notlimited to the steps shown nor the order of the steps shown, and areprovided solely as a basis for teaching exemplary embodiments of thepresent invention. Accordingly, amendments to these methods and/or theaddition, elimination, or combination of one or more steps may be madeto achieve like results and still be within the scope of the presentinvention. Moreover, although the method 1100 is described with regardto a location context type, the method 1100 is extensible to any of thecontext types described herein.

The method 1100 begins and proceeds to step 1102 wherein a plurality ofvoicemail greeting are established for a voicemail account. Each of thevoicemail greeting are assigned at least one context tag in step 1104.

At step 1106 the voicemail system receives a first context tag. Forexample, suppose the first context tag relates to a first location,Atlanta. The voicemail system can receive the first context tag in alocation update or a power-up registration procedure. After receipt ofthe first context tag, the method 1100 proceeds to step 1108 and a firstvoicemail greeting is determined. The voicemail system can receive thefirst context tag and compare it to the greeting field entriescorresponding to the Atlanta location. This voicemail greeting can thenbe set to the active voicemail greeting at step 1110. At step 1112 thevoicemail system receives an unanswered call and, the method 1100proceeds to step 1114, wherein the calling party is presented with thefirst voicemail greeting.

As the subscriber moves to a second location, New York, for example, alocation update or power-up registration procedure notifies the networkof the new location and consequently a second context tag notificationis generated based upon the new location. The second context tagnotification is sent to the voicemail system at step 1116. After receiptof the second context tag, the method 1100 proceeds to step 1118 and asecond voicemail greeting is determined. The voicemail system canreceive the second context tag and compare it to the greeting fieldentries corresponding to the New York location. This voicemail greetingis then set to the active voicemail greeting at step 1120. At step 1122the voicemail system receives an unanswered call and, the method 1100proceeds to step 1124, wherein the calling party is presented with thesecond voicemail greeting and the method ends.

The law does not require and it is economically prohibitive toillustrate and teach every possible embodiment of the present claims.Hence, the above-described embodiments are merely exemplaryillustrations of implementations set forth for a clear understanding ofthe principles of the invention. Variations, modifications, andcombinations may be made to the above-described embodiments withoutdeparting from the scope of the claims. All such variations,modifications, and combinations are included herein by the scope of thisdisclosure and the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A tangible computer-readable storage device, foruse in a voicemail system, comprising computer-executable instructionsthat, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to performoperations comprising: receiving, from a context device positioned at avenue, a context message generated by the context device and comprising:a subscriber identification associated with a mobile terminal thatprovided the subscriber identification to the context device, by way ofa short-range communication; and a context tag relating to the venue;and selecting, based on the context tag received, from the contextdevice positioned at the venue, with the context message, an applicablevoicemail greeting of a plurality of voicemail greetings associated witha voicemail account associated with the subscriber identification of thecontext message.
 2. The tangible computer-readable storage device ofclaim 1, wherein the operations further comprise associating theplurality of voicemail greetings, associated with the voicemail account,with multiple context tags, each voicemail greeting of the plurality ofvoicemail greetings being associated with at least one of the multiplecontext tags.
 3. The tangible computer-readable storage device of claim1, wherein the operations further comprise selecting the voicemailaccount based upon the subscriber identification received with thecontext message.
 4. The tangible computer-readable storage device ofclaim 1, wherein the operations further comprise setting the applicablevoicemail greeting as an active voicemail greeting for the voicemailaccount.
 5. The tangible computer-readable storage device of claim 4,wherein the operations further comprise: receiving a call from a callingparty; and presenting the active voicemail greeting to the callingparty.
 6. The tangible computer-readable storage device of claim 4,wherein: the context message is a first context message; the context tagis a first context tag; the applicable voicemail greeting is a firstapplicable voicemail greeting; and the operations further comprise,performing, subsequent to setting the first applicable voicemailgreeting as the active voicemail greeting, subsequent operationscomprising: selecting, based on a second context tag received with asecond context message, a second applicable voicemail greeting of theplurality of voicemail greetings; and setting the second applicablevoicemail greeting as the active voicemail greeting, in place of thefirst applicable voicemail greeting, for the voicemail account.
 7. Thetangible computer-readable storage device of claim 6, wherein thesubsequent operations further comprise: receiving a call from a callingparty; and presenting the active voicemail greeting, being the secondapplicable voicemail greeting, to the calling party.
 8. The tangiblecomputer-readable storage device of claim 6, wherein the second contexttag includes at least one characteristic selected from a group ofcharacteristics consisting of: a device parameter; and a networkparameter.
 9. The tangible computer-readable storage device of claim 1,wherein the context tag includes at least one characteristic selectedfrom a group of characteristics consisting of: a device parameter; and anetwork parameter.
 10. The voicemail system of claim 1, wherein thecontext tag indicates at least one characteristic selected from a groupof characteristics consisting of: a primary location of the venue; asecondary location of the venue; a name of the venue; an address of thevenue; a date of an event at the venue; a time of the event at thevenue; and a length of the event at the venue.
 11. The tangiblecomputer-readable storage device of claim 10, wherein the secondarylocation of the venue is a location within the venue.
 12. A voicemailsystem, comprising: a processor; and a computer-readable mediumcomprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by theprocessor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:receiving, from a context device positioned at a venue, a contextmessage generated by the context device and comprising: a subscriberidentification associated with a mobile terminal that provided thesubscriber identification to the context device, by way of a short-rangecommunication; and a context tag relating to the venue; and selecting,based on the context tag received, from the context device positioned atthe venue, with the context message, an applicable voicemail greeting ofa plurality of voicemail greetings associated with a voicemail accountassociated with the subscriber identification of the context message.13. The voicemail system of claim 12, wherein the operations furthercomprise associating the plurality of voicemail greetings, associatedwith the voicemail account, with multiple context tags, each voicemailgreeting of the plurality of voicemail greetings being associated withat least one of the multiple context tags.
 14. The voicemail system ofclaim 12, wherein the operations further comprise setting the applicablevoicemail greeting as an active voicemail greeting for the voicemailaccount.
 15. The voicemail system of claim 14, wherein: the contextmessage is a first context message; the context tag is a first contexttag; the applicable voicemail greeting is a first applicable voicemailgreeting; and the operations further comprise, performing, subsequent tosetting the first applicable voicemail greeting as the active voicemailgreeting, subsequent operations comprising: selecting, based on assecond context tag received with a second context message, a secondapplicable voicemail greeting of the plurality of voicemail greetings;and setting the second applicable voicemail greeting as the activevoicemail greeting, in place of the first applicable voicemail greeting,for the voicemail account.
 16. The voicemail system of claim 15, whereinthe second context tag includes at least one characteristic selectedfrom a group of characteristics consisting of: a device parameter; and anetwork parameter.
 17. The voicemail system of claim 12, wherein thecontext tag includes at least one characteristic selected from a groupof characteristics consisting of: a device parameter; and a networkparameter.
 18. The voicemail system of claim 12, wherein the context tagindicates at least one characteristic selected from a group ofcharacteristics consisting of: a primary location of the venue; asecondary location of the venue; a name of the venue; an address of thevenue; a date of an event at the venue; a time of the event at thevenue; and a length of the event at the venue.
 19. A method, formanaging a voicemail account, comprising: receiving, from a contextdevice positioned at a venue, a context message generated by the contextdevice and comprising: a subscriber identification associated with amobile terminal that provided the subscriber identification to thecontext device, by way of a short-range communication; and a context tagrelating to the venue; and selecting, by a system using a computerprocessor, based on the context tag received, from the context devicepositioned at the venue, with the context message, an applicablevoicemail greeting of a plurality of voicemail greetings associated witha voicemail account associated with the subscriber identification of thecontext message.